OGP’s Year in Review (One more annual report?!!)

In the weeks before we hit the finish line on our annual report, we came across Ruth Levine’s blog suggesting they can be a waste of time, and TAI’s blog arguing why they were not. Awkward timing, but we found ourselves agreeing with both.

Yes, they are a huge investment of time and effort. For a team of 40 supporting 96 national and local governments and thousands of civil society organizations, it can easily be low on the priority list. But they also give a bird’s eye view of what we achieved, and our place in this crowded landscape of governance work. Stepping back to reflect on that can be a luxury in OGP world, and that’s precisely why we need it.

In fact, late last year we did something unusual – we asked a blunt question to some of our donors on whether they found our annual reports useful at all. Thankfully, we got some blunt answers. Here’s what’s different:

It’s short(er). If OGP were to expound on its large portfolio of activities, the annual report would never end. We tried to be disciplined this time.

It’s data-driven. We leveraged data – both from our M&E efforts and from the IRM - to tell our story. We shifted from lengthy narratives to bullet points wherever we could.

It uses examples. In a field where seeing impact can be years away, we needed to show examples of incremental, on-the-ground changes as we work with reformers in OGP countries.

If you’re strapped for time, read the first two pages for a high-level summary of results in 2017. If not, read on!